Semi tractor-trailer trucks, or semis, are of indispensable economic value. An overwhelming number of the goods available in the market are transported using semis at one time or another. The capacity and flexibility of semis makes them well suited for delivery of items to locations not in close proximity to other transportation means. Unfortunately, the operation of semis is not without risk. Semis share roadways with vehicles that are a fraction of their size. Pedestrians and other objects are even smaller relative to semis. Of course, a semi operator must avoid contacting all obstacles regardless of their size or position. Currently, however, there exist blind areas on the passenger side of semis which prevent operators from viewing certain obstacles. Such blind areas create a substantial risk that a semi operator will be unable to see an obstacle and will, therefore, be unable to avoid contacting it. This may result in injury, death and/or property damage.
Some efforts have been made to address the problems created by blind areas of semis. Additional mirrors have been provided for mounting on the exterior of a semi to increase visibility. This technique suffers from numerous limitations. For example, the filed of view provided is limited, and is nonexistent in the forward direction. Furthermore, the cost associated with obtaining and installing additional mirrors makes this technique unattractive.
Another proposal to address blind areas contemplates using a conventional window installed in a porthole in the passenger side door in combination with a beveled mirror mounted on the exterior of the semi to provide some visibility. This proposal suffers from the limitations described above and, furthermore, the increased number of components makes this proposal even more costly.
A further proposal to address a blind area contemplates using a conventional window in a porthole in the passenger side door in combination with additional optical devices glued to the window and/or mounted adjacent to the window with additional gaskets or other parts to uniformly redirect the viewing angle. This proposal suffers from the limitations described above as well as adding undesirable distortion to images viewed through the combined system. Accordingly, it can be seen that there remains a need for improvements in the art.